The ongoing conflict in Iraq has forced five in every six Christians living in the Middle Eastern nation to leave their home country since 2003, a charity fighting persecution reported.
According to a report from The Christian Post, the group Open Doors estimated that about 1.5 million Christians used to live in Iraq in 2003 before the United States went into the country on suspicion that there were weapons of mass destruction, which ultimately led to the ouster and capture of dictator Saddam Hussein, resulting in a power vacuum in the nation.
Last year, fewer than 300,000 Christians remained in Iraq, according to Open Doors. This was after sectarian violence erupted in the Middle Eastern country. The Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group then seized some areas in the country, including Mosul, its second largest city, in 2014, as part of its scheme to establish its so-called caliphate.
Lisa Pearce, Open Doors chief executive officer, lamented the dwindling number of Christians in Iraq, and called for aid for those who chose to remain.
"In Iraq since 2003, five out of six Christians have left because they have completely given up hope of a future there," Pearce said in a recent interview with the British news outlet Premier.
Additionally, Pearce also said that only about 17 percent of Christians living in Syria chose to stay, amid a raging civil war in the country worsened by ISIS atrocities in the area. Before the conflict in Syria, 10 percent of the country's population was composed of Christians.
"Since the war began in Syria, about half of the Christians have fled the country," the anti-persecution activist told Premier.
Also speaking to Premier, a Syrian Christian named Rami said residents like him would "rather stay in the Middle East" if they were given a choice.
He also appealed to people "not to call us a minority," stressing that Christians in Syria are "indigenous to the land."
